Month: June 2003

We’ve been walking on air since the meeting on June 10 at the Washoe County Commissioners’ chambers. (See “Burning Man Files Suit Against Washoe County, 06.06.03, below.) More than sixty Burners showed up and shared their heartfelt, articulate, passionate, and convincing thoughts for more than two hours on why the Commissioners should reconsider their decision to uphold the appeal that put a halt to our permitting plans for the work ranch. In fact, everyone was so convincing that two of the Commissioners who voted against us at the May 13 meeting, Jim Shaw and Jim Galloway, both accepted our challenge and agreed to come and tour the Ranch .

We’re confident they’ll make an informed decision and agree to support our permits. And, they’ll have that chance on June 24, since the issue has been put back on their meeting agenda for that day. (More to come on meeting details and how you can participate) Our thanks to the more than 250 of you who sent an unprecedented number of letters to the Editors of the Reno Gazette Journal supporting Burning Man’s rights to use our property. No more letters to the editor are needed – they have heard our message loud and clear! Thanks, too, to everyone who showed up at the meeting! Stay tuned for the next installments.

On June 6, 2003, Black Rock City LLC filed a lawsuit against the Washoe County Board of Commissioners and Washoe County, seeking to avoid penalties related to the four special use permits we were denied for the staging area on our property at Black Rock Station. We are of the opinion that the appeal to our permits is based on conjecture and misinformation. Frankly, we’re confused as to exactly why we are being denied our right to use our property in this manner.

— Come Join Us Tuesday, June 10, in Reno, NV at the Washoe County Board of Commissioners meeting — We’re planning a show of strength at the next Washoe County Board of Commissioners meeting, being held June 10 in Reno at 2:00 PM. Each meeting starts with an opportunity for public comment; each speaker gets three minutes to share with the Commissioners their opinions on any topic that is NOT on that night’s agenda. You don’t need to be from Washoe County or even Nevada to speak – our goal is to get as many Burners as possible there to show the Commissioners the importance of Burning Man to the financial and cultural sustainability of the area. So, grab your friends from your theme camp and carpool out to Reno. It will be a blast! If you’re planning to attend, email rae (at) burningman (dot) com so we can have an idea of the expected turnout and send out updates if we have them.

Exit off of 80 in Reno at Wells (Exit #14) and head North. Make a right on 9th and a left into the Washoe County offices’ parking lot.

What to say at the meeting:
We want the Commissioners to reconsider their decision. The outcome we desire at Tuesday’s meeting is twofold:

— The Board should suspend their normal rules and reconsider the decision to uphold the appeal
— The reconsideration should be placed on the regular agenda for the
next meeting

Come prepared to let the board know that public opinion on this issue strongly supports rejecting the appeal. If you write a letter to the editor of the Reno Gazette Journal (see below), you might want to simply read your letter outlining your points. The board needs to be reminded of the financial and cultural impact of Burning Man. We don’t want to leave Washoe County, but there are other counties who have expressed interest in welcoming Burning Man instead. This would be a major economic loss to Washoe County, and the Board should be reminded of this fact. [para_end]